KINDRED SPIRITS
by Silvanna Nightlight
Summary: The Ministry of Magic is concerned about the safety of a de-aged Harry, so they sent one of their best Aurors for his safekeeping and care. Possible AU.
1. The Darkness Before The Dawn

_A DISCLAIMER AND A SPECIAL DISCLAIMER_

_I don't own the characters of Avengers and Harry Potter. This fic was written with the purpose of providing a fun time to everyone._

_This story is based on the fics " Man of Iron, Father of Gold", and its sequel "Disparity by Magic", both of which were written by Lunabell Marauder Knyte; this one is written with her blessing and permission._

* * *

******KINDRED SPIRITS**

**by**

**Airshadow**

**CHAPTER I**

THE DARKNESS BEFORE THE DAWN

___London, UK__. __16:00 pm. Ministry of Magic._

Kingsley Shacklebolt, a former Auror and now Minister for Magic, sighed after taking a few sips of his tea. He left the cup on his oak desk, and his brown eyes fell in the magically animated photograph of the Second Order of Phoenix that hung on one of his office's lilac-toned walls. A feeling of sadness invaded him when he saw a teen with raven hair and a lightning bolt-shaped scar.

While he stared at it, he contemplated what just happened some months ago, and its possible outcomes. The latest events in America had directly affected the wizarding community on many levels, some of them personal. For two long years one of its most prominent members, Harry Potter, had been missing. Every one of his friends had the hope that he would reappear unharmed.

After months of hope that had slowly become desperation, the news that they were looking for appeared in the least expected place in the Earth, and in the strangest way. Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived, was found in New York! But not as the man that he was, he was now an almost eight-year-old kid, and the adopted son of the Muggle known as Tony Stark, who also is the superhero "Iron Man".

Kingsley sighed one more time as his mind returned to the present; he had many things to do for Harry's safekeeping, The Death Eaters weren't his only concern. Knowing that the dangerous and malicious entity named Loki was sentenced to fulfill his punishment on Earth, that was bad enough; but the fact that part of it was to babysit Harry, only allowed to use his powers to protect him, didn't silence down his worries. This fact actually had the opposite effect.

Loki was, without a doubt, a combined, wicked and malicious version of Fred and George. Even though they had in common their troublemaking nature and penchant for pranks, the Weasley Twins knew when to stop before someone really was injured... And Loki's actions resulted in the death of 80 people in two days, not to mention Harry's kidnapping.

Fred...

Kingsley looked again with sorrow at the picture of The Second Order of Phoenix while he remembered the battles that took place in Hogwarts' grounds, and with them the lives of the brave men and women that were lost there: Fred... Remus... Tonks... and many more.

He shook his head one more time and took a dossier that SHIELD had sent him about the so-called god of mischief and lies. After another brief read plus a moment of meditation, Kingsley took his wand and summoned his Patronus. The silver lynx looked at the Minister for Magic expectantly.

"Go and give Mr. Fury the follow message," Kingsley told to the silvery linx "'Mister Fury, I have just read the dossier. I believe that we have to take extra measures to protect Harry, taking into account the unexpected turn of events. I will appear in your office in 30 minutes in order to discuss matters further - Yours Truly, Kingsley Shacklebolt'."

As soon as he finished to dictating the message, his Patronus ran to reach its destination. Kingsley estimated that it would take the same time as what the Muggles call an email to reach Mr. Fury's desk in America. Almost immediately, the ex-Auror took a blue quill and sank it into his golden inkwell. Then he wrote in a piece of parchment with purple ink:

___ Miss Black,_

___ I require your presence in my office. I have a special assignment for you._

___ Kingsley Shacklebolt._

___ Minister for Magic._

When he finished, Kingsley tapped the parchment with his wand. The note began to fold itself into a paper airplane; when it finished, it flew towards the second level. Once the memo arrived at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, it headed towards Auror Headquarters.

___New York, USA__. __12:30 am. Stark Tower._

It was a beautiful day in the emblematic city of New York, but one of his inhabitants didn't think that. At first sight, he was an elegant man with long black hair, wearing expensive dark clothes, and leaning against a column as he looked at the great metropolis. Set into his features, a sly pair of eyes watched the landscape, while a storm was raging in his heart.

Loki watched New York City from one of the windows of Stark Towers, in the same floor that he shared with his 'Brother', Thor. It was a fairly comfortable place, according to mortal standards, every single detail, from the furniture to the lighting, was cozy and tasteful. But despite all of this, he was in a foul mood that morning. It wasn't exactly weird; in fact, it was the same thing that he had felt since he knew what the punishment that the All-Daddy, Odin, had prepared for him: be the nanny of a young, annoying, and mischievous warlock... Well, he actually liked the mischievous side of the Little Raven; after all he was Loki, the God of Mischief.

On other hand, Loki reflected, it was something in the child of the Man of Iron that intrigued him; but what exactly that something was continued to slip from his mind, and that annoyed him very much.

He remembered when he kidnapped the Little Raven, the boy was practically at his mercy; he could have harmed him or struck a good bargain with Mr. Casanova. But NOOOOOO! Acting like a complete fool, he had brought him back to his stupid so-called brother, surrendered to his enemies, and ended up stuck in Midgard - without his powers, without immortality, and to make things worse, as the nanny of the Little Stark!

"Greetings, Brother."

Loki scowled when he heard a voice that he knew well and really despised "Good day, Brother dearest," sneered the prince of Chaos without move his position, "Have you come to make sure that I'm behaving?"

"Nay," replied Thor "'Tis almost time to take our meal, Brother; remember, as a mortal, thou art subject now to their hardships."

As if he could forget that, Loki thought as he snorted, he got a reminder when his stomach started to growl. This is one of the things that he had learned about 'being-a-mortal' stuff and the fact to be tied to the Midgard realm: Hunger, thirst, plus others unpleasant sensations.

"Thanks Daddy Odin for this incredible experience." the god of mischief thought with bitter sarcasm.

"Come Brother," Thor said while he waited for Loki at the door, "The others await us."

"I doubt that they want to watch me any time soon," the god of chaos replied while he watched the bracelet that once belonged to Harry, "And don't call me 'brother'."

Thor sighed, and he and Loki walked towards the dinning room.

- o0o -

Lunch time with Loki's presence was alway tense. Forced smiles and exaggerated courtesy were the norm amongst most of those present when they had to talk with the god of mischief; the only ones that were genuinely kind to him were Harry and Thor.

The dining room was wide and well-lit, and had a stunning view of New York. The table was large, in order to allow everyone to have a comfortable space. Harry's place was moved close to Tony's while Steve sat down in his other side; his father and godfather wanted to be sure that the little one was far from the troublemaking wizard and very close to them, in case things turned ugly. In order to be more sure that things would be under control, Loki was placed between the god of thunder and Dr. Banner.

Most of the chatting was done between Harry and the Avengers. They were the kind of chats that every family would have; considering that Loki had forbidden any kind of jokes and pranks, plus had zero tolerance for politics among them, he only opened his mouth to eat.

"Are you enjoying the roast beef, Mr. Laufeyson?" asked a childish voice.

Loki looked at Harry and then shot a quick glance at the others Avengers, especially at the Man of Iron; the god of mischief understood quickly that he had to be careful with his answer "I'm not big fan of the American food, Little Raven," said with a neutral tone, "Personally, I would prefer the Asgardian one."

"Maybe, Uncle Happy could cook some dishes one day." Harry said innocently.

"I highly doubt that you can find an Asgardian Cooking book in the Amazon, Little Raven." Loki answered while he scanned carefully the Avengers' reactions.

"Why would the Amazons have a cooking book?" asked Thor while Loki just rolled his eyes in disbelief.

"Mr. Stark, Nick Fury on the phone." Jarvis said.

"I haven't done anything! I swear! I have spent many weeks behaving nicely!" Loki babbled nervously.

"Shut up, Reindeer," Tony scolded, then added, "Jarvis, tell Fury that we are just eating our lunch, so unless the subject is a catastrophic abnormality, whatever he has to say can wait."

"He insists, Mr. Stark," Jarvis replied after few minutes, "Mr. Fury said that he and Mr. Shacklebolt have something important to discuss about the young master Harry."

These words fell like cold water among all present. Tony stormed out the room only to reappear after few minutes.

"Fury wants that we go to Helicarrier. That includes you, Reindeer," Tony said with a serious tone, which wasn't a good sign.


	2. The Second Brightest Star

_A DISCLAIMER AND A SPECIAL DISCLAIMER_

_I don't own the characters of Avengers or Harry Potter. This story was written with the purpose of providing a fun time to everyone._

_This story is based on the fics "Man of Iron, Father of Gold" and its sequel "Disparity by Magic", both of which were written by Lunabell Marauder Knyte and this one is written with her blessing and permission._

**KINDRED SPIRITS**

by

Airshadow

**CHAPTER II**

THE SECOND BRIGHTEST STAR

**Vocabulary**

**Bobby** - Police Officer (British slang)

As the shuttle that was transporting Harry and the Avengers was arriving at the Helicarrier, the tension could be felt inside the cabin. Tony grabbed Harry's hand as if he feared that a hurricane would snatch him. Steve was close to them, trying to conceal his concern. Dr. Banner, Clint, and Natasha looked nervously at Tony and Harry, then to Thor and Loki.

The Asgardians were in the farthest corner. The god of thunder looked thoughtful, contemplating the words that his brother had told him just before to take this strange flying iron boat took off. Next to him, the prince of chaos seemed to enjoy the trip leaning against his seat..

_"You won't allow them to do it, brother, will you?" whispered a honeyed voice close to his ear. It sounded almost like a snake trying to appease a predator._

_"What art thou saying, brother?" Thor looked surprised at the god of lies._

_"You won't allow SHIELD take the Little Raven away from the Man of Iron to be used as a weapon... will you?"_

_"Art thou feeling concern for Harry Starkson?"_

_Loki looked at Thor as if he didn't understand the question, then he answered with a slight ironic tone "Well taking into account that I am his babysitter, thanks to All-Daddy Odin by the way, we will get bored very quickly there... Not to mention that I hate the idea of being bossed around."_

Suddenly Loki straightened, as if he was able to sense or hear something that the others couldn't. It happened at the same time that the shuttle was arriving at Helicarrier.

"Dost thou sense that, Brother?" Thor inquired.

"Ohh... Yeah!" Loki said with an ambiguous smirk.

"What? What are you babbling about?" Clint replied looking at the Asgardians.

"Magic, there is a strong magic presence... " was the answer of the prince of mischief, "The wizards are there, but this time it isn't a big crowd. Nevertheless, they are actually powerfull; I can feel that the soul of one of them... It is quite chaotic... The best description would be a growing storm. Watch out for that one!"

"What do you mean?" Thor asked while he watched at his brother's green eyes.

"You will see, brother dearest," Loki answered with a cryptic smile, "Usually, people have behavioral patterns; you can guess what they will or won't do, right? But some others, you simply don't know what they will do next! They can do one thing or another or just not do anything... Of all mortals, they are the most problematic to predict and handle."

"I guess that we have to listen you because you are a pro in the subject," Clint said bitterly, still remembering how he felt to be a puppet in Loki's hands.

"Thank you so much," answered Loki with a fake modest grin. It didn't turn into a major issue just because they landed in the Helicarrier before it could happen.

- o0o -

The group walked through the metal-plated corridors until they reached Fury's office. Outside, they noticed that not only Agents Hill and Coulson were waiting for them, a new face waited as well.

Leaning against the wall that separated Fury's office with the rest of the ship was a very beautiful young woman. She had pale skin, and sad blue eyes. She had a oval face which was framed by her long white hair. She was dressed in a flawless manner. Her outfit consisted of pants and an elegant jacket, both black, which matched with her purple blouse and high heel shoes.

From head to toe, she gave the impression of being a normal business woman, but at the same time seemed delicate, defenseless... She looked almost resembled a lovely princess that just popped out of a fairy tale. But if there was anything that Tony had learned from the merciless world of the business, it was one thing: Never trust outward appearances.

"Hi Mr. Coulson, hi Ms. Hill" Harry greeted happily when he saw the SHIELD agents.

"Hello Harry," Agent Hill answered with a smile; she really was fond with Harry.

"Hello Harry," Coulson echoed, and then greeted the others, "Mr. Stark, Avengers... and Troublemaker; Fury and Mr. Shacklebolt are waiting for your arrival."

"Thank you, Phil," Tony said, and looking to the white haired woman added with a charming smile, "And you are...? "

"Sabrina Adhara Black..." her voice was soft, sweet; it was almost like listening to a supernatural being.

"Epsilon Canis Majoris..." All the eyes turned to Loki, who added with a teasing smile, "That is what your astronomers named Adhara, isn't? The second brightest star of Canis Major... "

"How do you know that, Mr. Laufeyson?" Harry asked while his green eyes shone with curiousity.

"Wikipedia, Little raven, Wikipedia," Loki answered with a slight bored tone in his voice.

"Remind me to ask Jarvis to set a child block in the computers, and forbid the Reindeer to use the internet." Stark whispered to Bruce.

Coulson cleared his throat and added, "Miss Black is an Auror..."

"What's an Auror?" asked a childish voice. All eyes moved to Harry and then to Sabrina.

"It's a high qualified sorcerer that works for Department of Magical Law Enforcement," Loki winced when he heard those words while Sabrina answered the young Stark with a smile, the first one that the Avengers saw on her. They also noticed that her next words had a special remark, "And their main job is hunt down dark wizards."

"Like the police or sheriffs bour... dour... pour-suit the bad guys?" Harry asked full of interest.

"As the Americans said, we play in the Major Leagues," Sabrina replied kindly, "That is the difference between us and our magical counterparts of the Bobbies."

"WOOOW!" Harry said excitedly, which made Tony feel a bit jealous of her for all the attention that she was getting from his son.

Before the little wizard could continue his interrogation, the office's door opened, revealing Nick Fury, together with the Prime Minister of the Wizards, Kingsley Shacklebolt. Fury gave a small gesture, inviting Stark to come in.

Tony was almost inside, when he stopped and said, "Wait here, I will find out what James Bond and the Wizard of Oz have to tell us; hopefully they won't shoot us a curve."

Tony knelt, looking into Harry's green eyes as he said with his characteristic careless tone, "Listen Champ, I need to talk with Mr. Fury and Mr. Shacklebolt, do you remember what we spoke about?"

"Yeah! No wander alone in the ship and not to stay close of Mr. Laufeyson without supervision." Harry answered.

"That's my boy, when we finish this we can go get ice cream," Tony said with a smile at his son while he ruffled the kid's hair. Harry gave a wide smile and promised to behave. Tony then gave a harsh glare at the god of chaos as he asked,"And you, do you remember what we spoke about in our little talk?"

"Behave and don't stay alone with Harry without supervision," Loki replied with a clear tone of annoyance.

"It's good that we have an understanding, Reindeer," Tony said while he walked towards the door. Once he stepped into the room, the door closed behind him.

"Harry, do you like to walk around a little bit?" Steve offered.

"YEAH!" the little wizard replied happily, who gave his little hand to his Godfather, and both went to take a stroll.

"What now? Nobody going to invite me to take a stroll?" Loki teased. With the exception of Miss Black, who continued calmly leaned against a wall, and Thor who with a look reprimanded him, everyone glanced at god of lies in a way that said they clearly wanted give him something other than a stroll. Looking at the young witch, the god of mischief added "What about you, Snow White?"

"Do you think that is really smart, Trickster?" she said with an eerie tone, then she slowly took something from her elegant jacket: it was an ebony wand. She was holding it with her thumb and index finger, allowing everyone to see that its base was decorated with silver. She added with a malicious smile, "You see - I have a wand, I have magic, and I'm not afraid to use either... Do you think that is wise?"

"Yikes!" Loki said while he hid behind Thor. Sabrina chuckled whilst she continued to give a malicious smile. She turned her head towards the next window and looked silently out over the cloudy landscape.


	3. A Meeting

___A DISCLAIMER AND A SPECIAL DISCLAIMER_

___I don't own the characters of Avengers and Harry Potter. This fic was written with the purpose of providing a fun time to everyone._

___This story is based in fics "Man of Iron, Father of Gold" and its sequel "Disparity by Magic", that were written by __Lunabell Marauder Knyte____, and this one is written with her blessing and permission._

___One line written in this story appears in the fanfic "Man of Iron, Father of Gold" which was written by __Lunabell Marauder Knyte____ and appears here, one more time, with her blessing and permission._

* * *

**KINDRED SPIRITS**

**by**

**Airshadow**

**CHAPTER III**

A MEETING

Time flowed and for around twenty minutes, all remained unchanged. Harry and Steve had arrived from their stroll a while ago and sat down. Cap, fulfilling his duties as godfather, took a seat for them far away from the mischievous Loki. But for the moment, the sly Asgardian had a wary look in his eye on Snow White, aka Miss Black. He knew that she was the kind of mortal that nobody knew what was able to do. Harry was starting to fall asleep when the sound of an intercom alerted all.

"Avengers and Miss Black," Fury said by the intercom "We require your presence in my office... and bring Loki with you!"

At first, Steve didn't want to attend because he felt that it was his duty to stay with Harry. After a second call, he reluctantly went inside the office, but not without making sure that agents Coulson and Hill wouldn't take away their eyes off him.

When finally Cap came inside the office, he saw Miss Black and Mr. Shacklebolt close to Fury. Tony was at one corner of the table, and in front of him was a dossier which had an animated picture of Miss Black fastened with a clip. He also could see a seal, obviously belonging to an official organization. The logo of the Minister of Magic could be seen clearly, together with the words 'Auror Office' written in purple ink.

Natasha, Clint, and Dr. Banner took seats around Stark while Thor and Loki were in the farthest corner.

Fury looked around, and then he broke the silence, "As we know, and it was agreed to by the wizards, Harry James Stark is now legally the adopted son of Tony Stark. It is also of the common knowledge that Loki is magically bound to this kid, and he only can have access to his power if young Harry is in danger." Loki snorted; just remembering that fact irritated him.

The leader of SHIELD looked around, ignoring the god of mischief and then continued, "Due to these terms, the situation has raised some concerns in the involved parties. Taking into account that your presence, Loki, isn't totally welcome, plus the constant menace of the so called Death Eaters; Mr. Shacklebolt and I were talking about designating Miss Black as Harry's bodyguard..."

"I can perfectly protect MY son, Fury!" Tony jumped to his feet, challenging Fury and Kingsley with a glare.

"From some kinds of menaces, I agree" Sabrina replied, "But what about the magical ones? Will you trust your son's care to someone as Loki? Forgive me, but the so called god of lies and chaos is not exactly someone reliable for such task. Besides, the Death Eaters have many creative ways to get away with kidnapping... not to mention murder."

Tony felt uneasy now - he remembered the warnings of the ghost of his father. An alien feeling invaded his heart, something that he never thought that he would felt in his life: Fear... fear to lose what he loved most.

"What do you suggest?" Natasha asked coldly.

"Aurors always were used to protect high profile targets," replied Kingsley "I myself was appointed to protect the British Prime Minister in The Second Wizarding War, shortly after someone unsuccessfully attempted to cast the Imperius Curse on a member of his staff."

"The Imperius Curse?" all the eyes turned to Dr. Banner then to the wizards.

"It forces the target to do the caster's bidding, it's one of the three Unforgivable Curses," Sabrina answered. When she saw that everyone looked confused, with the exception of Loki, added "Those are punished with life sentence when they are applied in human beings, no matter if is wizard or Muggle. Other one is the Cruciatus Curse, which inflicts excruciating pain upon the victim and was very popular among the Death Eaters for torture... and the worse of all, the Avada Kedavra. This one causes instant death. The only way to save your life is dodging it or using a solid object to stop it."

"Was that the one used on Harry when...?" Tony whispered but he was unable to finish the sentence.

"He was a baby? Yes," Sabrina answered bluntly while an uneasy silence fell in the room.

"Why not give the task to Miss Weasley? She really appreciates Harry and seems to be quite capable." Tony insisted. He didn't doubted that Kingsley had a genuine intention to protect his son, but Stark didn't like the idea that Fury was involved in the matter due his constant fear that the SHIELD Director would attempt to turn Harry in a sort of weapon.

Kingsley and Miss Black looked at each other quickly before the young witch answered almost in an accusatory manner "I'm sorry Mr. Stark, but Ginny isn't in condition to do it. Plus, the others wizards and witches that participated in the New York incident are too emotionally involved to perform the mission appropriately."

"Did something happen to Miss Weasley?" Tony asked with concern.

Kingsley and Miss Black looked at each other one more time and finally the witch responded "We can say that she's living her second childhood... She was de-aged, now she's a happy seven years old girl."

Most of the presents were stunned with the revelation, while Loki paid special attention to every word, and Tony felt guilty because he knew that somehow he was involved.

"What happened?" Steve whispered.

"We found the witch who cast the spell..." Kingsley started to say when Sabrina snorted.

"Miss Black?" questioned Fury.

"I wouldn't say exactly that we found her," she answered sharply "I have the suspicion that we found her because she allowed it."

"So what did happen?"

"We located her in Romania, shortly after what happened here. Ginny, another of Harry's friends, and myself went there. She seemed to know why we were," Sabrina answered while the sadness appeared in her face "When we questioned her, she told us that the spell is an ancient one and is linked to strange astronomic phenomena. She claimed that only could use it one more time because the time was running out, and offered Ginny to cast on her and binding it to Harry's... She decided to accept and was de-aged too."

"What's the relationship between Miss Weasley and Harry?" Tony softly asked.

"Harry is the love of her life..." Sabrina said sternly.

Stark felt a stab of guilt and replied "Does a way exist to break the spell...?"

"None so far we know," Kingsley answered, "The only thing that we can do is let them grow as normal children."

"But..."

"Mr. Stark, you must understand this," Sabrina interrupted "Magic is much more than a wave of a wand and an incantation. Some spells requires special conditions in order to be cast. And as in Chemistry and Physics, Magic has laws! And disregarding them is an invitation to disaster. Our best option, so far, is let them grow up as normal kids and focus on Harry's safety."

"What happened with the Wicked Witch of the East?" Clint asked while it was Kingsley's turn to have a confused look.

With a glance the Minister for Magic asked an explanation to the young Auror, she chuckled and responded "It's a character of the Muggle fairly-tale 'The Wizard of Oz'." then she replied "After doing that, she disappeared. I highly doubt that we will find her any time soon."

"But, you have magic..." Clint insisted.

"She does as well." Sabrina interrupted.

"And Miss Weasley?" Tony whispered with concern and remorse.

"Her memories were slightly modified and once more she's under the legal custody of her parents," Kingsley responded trying to soothe Tony's guilt feelings "And in the case of something happening, one of her brothers and his wife will be her legal guardians."

"What's about you?" Suddenly everyone heard Natasha's dry tone of voice, "What kind of relationship do you have with Harry?"

"My father was his Godfather," whispered softly the young Auror, and her voice slightly trembled, "His name was Sirius Black..."

"Before you make a judgment," Kingsley intervened "Mr. Black was framed for the murder of twelve muggles, crimes which were done by Peter Pettigrew as cover up of his own treachery. Sirius's name was cleared post-mortem after an exhaustive investigation. He was also member of the Order of Phoenix in both Wizarding Wars."

"Post-Mortem?"

"The Order of Phoenix?"

"The Order of the Phoenix was founded with the main objective to stop Voldemort and his Death Eaters. When he returned, the veterans of the first order gathered together new members and allies." In Kingsley's eyes the sadness could be appreciated, "But we suffered heavy losses."

"My father lost his life in the battle at the Ministry of Magic," Sabrina whispered, "When he was trying to save Harry."

___'It was a year later, in a battle at the Ministry of Magic itself that people witnessed the return of the Hitler of our world. It caused most of us to be critically injured, and took away the last real relative Harry had left in this world.'_Those had been the words that Hermione told to most of those present many months ago, that now made more sense.

"Now Mr. Stark, let's talk about the matter that concerns us... shall we?" Sabrina spoke with a more formal tone, "I think that you will find my credentials satisfactory."

Tony took the dossier and carefully read it one more time. Some stuff like Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potioneer, Charms, Transfiguration, Dueling and Martial skills, not to mention Nonverbal and limited wandless magic, all of which sounded very clear... even for a Muggle. But others terms required a further explanation.

"There are only a few points in your profile which need clarification - like Occlumency, Legilimency and Animagus?" Tony finally spoke while he left the dossier in the table. The sly eyes of Loki moved towards Sabrina, as if he were evaluating a possible foe; this fact wasn't unnoticed by Steve and Tony.

"Legilimency is the art to correctly interpret feelings, memories and thoughts from an individual. Usually, it's used to tell if someone is lying. Because digging inside others' thoughts is considered an invasion of privacy, its use is highly restricted by the Ministry of Magic." Loki winced worriedly while Sabrina huffed with disdain while she looked at the god of lies, and continued "A highly skilled Legilimens can do it without speaking the incantation, and they can influence the mind of their target... Lucky for you, Trickster, I need to say the spell in order for it to work."

"So technically, you can read the minds!" Clint exclaimed surprised.

"That's a very simplistic way to define it." Sabrina tsked "The mind is much more complex than a book, so I can't just 'read it'." She then added, "On the other hand, Occlumency is the art of shielding your mind against an external invasion."

She did a small pause and then continued "I'll be totally honest in this point, Mr. Stark, in its basic form I can set my mind in blank: No emotions, no memories, no feelings... But I'm skilled enough to hide things. I can conceal the contradictory facts of my words and actions, and cheat a lie detector. I tell you this because eventually you will know it, and because I want to offer my services to protect Harry. Without a catch, and with the cards over the table."

"Soooo, Snow White" Loki teased "Are you a professional liar? That's unexpected."

"Coming from you, Pinocchio, I don't know if I should be flattered," Sabrina snorted while Thor and Kingsley looked confused.

Tony cleared his throat and asked "What is an Animagus?"

"I'll show you…" replied Sabrina with a smile, she walked some steps towards the table, and suddenly her body shrank and was covered by a fur white as snow. The little creature walked on the table towards the Avengers, who could appreciate that the young Auror was now a cute cat with shining blue eyes.

Most of the presents were really surprised, while the little kitty walked towards the table's border. She jumped towards the floor and recovered her human form.

"Why a cat?" Tony shrieked "They are always in the evil overlords arms, not to mention..."

"Witches..." Sabrina finished with an amused smile while looked at the Avengers. "An animagus only can transform into a specific animal that is determined by his or her inner nature. It's a skill more than an incantation, and it's very rare. My father was one of the few known in the past century. His form was a big black dog... Are you alright Mr. Stark?"

All the eyes were now on Tony, who was pale as a ghost. "In the first months that Harry spent with me, he had nightmares..." he stopped trying to find the right words in order to not sound stupid, "After one of them, he drew a man with long shaggy hair, and in the background stood a black dog."

Sabrina and Kingsley exchanged glances, and the witch asked, "Do you still have those pictures?" Tony nodded, then she added, "If you allow me see them; I will do my best to give you answers."

"Sounds like a deal," Tony answered and with a typical Stark smile he added "By the way, you are hired. I guess that you will need some days to gather your things..."

"In fact, I just need few minutes." Sabrina chuckled while she took her wand wave it, then a silver wolf-like creature appeared and as if where the most normal thing of the world, she talked to it "Ok, you know where to go. Send my message to Issy, in Garden Glove."

"What the heck was that?" Clint babbled while the other Avengers looked amazed as him.

"My patronus, it's also known as Spirit Guardian," replied Sabrina "It's a very difficult charm and is normally used as defense against some of the darkest creatures that dwell this planet. One innovation allowed the Order of Phoenix used them as messengers because it's dark magic-proof and identify the caster."

"Is thy Spirit Guardian a wolf?" Thor questioned as he raised an eyebrow.

"More accurately a Czechoslovakian Wolfdog." Sabrina replied as she shrugged her shoulder, few minutes after a truck appeared close her. She looked at it and then at the Avengers, "It seems that I'm ready."

"One second Miss Black," Kingsley intervened while he stepped away of the table "I think Mr. Stark, now that we have an agreement, that it is time to make the proper introductions with the young Harry."


	4. An Introduction And An Offer

_A DISCLAIMER AND A SPECIAL DISCLAIMER_

_I don't own the characters of Avengers and Harry Potter. This fic was written with the purpose of providing a fun time to everyone._

_This story is based on the fics "Man of Iron, Father of Gold" and its sequel "Disparity by Magic", both of which were written by Lunabell Marauder Knyte. This one is written with her blessing and permission._

* * *

**KINDRED SPIRITS**

by

Airshadow

**CHAPTER IV**

AN INTRODUCTION AND AN OFFER

"One second Miss Black," Kingsley interjected while he stepped away from the table, "I think Mr. Stark, since we now have an agreement, that it is time to make our proper introductions to young Harry."

Tony looked at Mr. Shacklebolt and nodded. He was more than happy that the meeting was over, his over-protecting nature was screaming to see his son soon, and stay at his side. He had to admit that his son had a knack for getting into trouble... Involuntarily, that is. Fury used the intercom one more time and the office's door opened.

"Daddy! Daddy!"

The young wizard with green doe eyes gave a big hug to his dad who ruffled his hair, earning more laughs in the little one.

"Look Champ," Tony said in a fatherly way, "You know how your old man worries about you."

"You aren't old."

"Well, Hare-Bear," replied Tony, "You know that sometimes, we are a little busy with the Hero stuff, you know: Saving the world, fighting the bad guys and things like that." Harry nodded, and Tony continued, "Mr. Shacklebolt, who is a good friend of mine and also cares about you, recommended to me one of his Aurors to help me care you. So Miss Black..."

"Will become part of our family?" Harry said with glee, his small family was growing

"Well... Yes, something like that."

"YAY!" Harry cheered; his overdose of happiness launching a burst of magic made that Sabrina's hair turns violet while Tony and Steve's turned red. Natasha's hair turned blonde and she found herself wearing a white Tutu. On the other hand, Clint had a clown's nose, Bruce's skin became blue and Mr. Fury got a coonskin hat. Loki laughed hysterically, this was much better than 'where do babies come from?' incident, at least till his own hair turned orange. His eyes were shooting daggers towards a very angry Miss Black who had her wand in her hand.

Kingsley looked at her as if he was saying 'Why did you do it?' Sabrina huffed and retorted, "I warned him."

"I'm sorry... I... I..." Harry pouted and almost bursting in tears.

"Oh come on, it's nothing." Kingsley consoled him, talking him in the same way than an uncle would do it to his favorite nephew. The Minister of Magic waved his wand fixing all the mess, even Sabrina and Loki's hair. "You see. Things like this happen all time." Looking to all those present, he added, "Any questions? Yes Harry?"

All adults shuddered when they saw Harry's little hand shoot up; they expected a tough question to answer by the mischievous wizard. Harry, unaware of this unease, innocently asked, "Mr. Shacklebolt, do you and Mr. Fury play baseball?"

"Baseball?" Kingsley repeated a bit surprised, but relieved as the rest of the presents that the issue wasn't so problematic. "I don't know if Mr. Fury does, but I don't. Why do you ask, Harry?"

"Because before daddy came in, he said that he hoped that you two not shoot him a curve ball." Everyone chuckled while Harry looked around, not understanding why the adults were laughing.

"Well, Miss Black," Kingsley spoke when he was able to regain his solemnity and used his wand to summon her dossier, while Tony took Harry's hand and waited for the others "Consider yourself now in active service. Still I have to work with our American counterparts to polish some details regarding our presence here, not to mention all the things that you will have to do while you are performing your duties."

"Constant Vigilance?" Sabrina said almost chuckling.

"Do you still remember it?"

"How could I forget at Moody?" She replied with sadness.

Kingsley looked at her with sorrow while he remembered his friend and mentor. Then he took back the control of his emotions and replied in a professional way, "Don't forget to keep me updated of everything that happens."

"Yes, sir... Ah! One more thing."

Kingsley looked at Sabrina, who added "I think that it would be smart to have someone keep an eye on Professor Trelawney. Who knows, perhaps she might finally hone her inner eye and make another prophecy... Just in case."

The minister of Magic shook his head; but knowing all the circumstances that involved both wars, the advice was worthy.

"Ladies, gents and Harry, farewell." Kingsley said goodbye with a slight nod to the others, then he did a step and disapparated.

"WOW! How he did it?" Harry asked excitedly.

"Magic," Sabrina replied with a smile while Harry smiled back.

"Miss Black, let us help you with your luggage," Steve offered, ever the perfect gentleman, while Clint stepped forward too.

"You are very kind, but there is no need bother," she answered with a gracious smile while she hit three times her trunk with her wand. It levitated few inches from the ground, "You see."

"Enjoying your last moments of magic, Snow White? Someone so self-righteous as you wouldn't like to break The International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, now would you?" Loki teased with a wicked grin. It would be fun to see another spellcaster deal a 'normal' life without cast spells.

"How sweet of you, Trickster, but you don't need to worry about me," she replied with a fake sweetness, "You see, I just need the permission from our American colleagues and then I can have free reign over my magic whenever I want... More accurately, most of it. It is why my boss will talk with them in a nearby future, and then I will be able to work with my full potential."

Loki paled, and all those present were silently thankful that he decided shut up.

Everybody started to leave the room. The god of mischief kept close to his good-natured adopted brother, just in case. Tony held Harry's hand while Steve was close. The young wizard was watching amazing how Sabrina's bewitched trunk was following her, and he was wondering when he would be able to do something like that.

Everyone gathered outside Fury's office in order to decide what to do next. Harry asked his dad to go for the promised ice cream; but he also wanted to show the new member of the family where she could get the best ice cream in the world!

Although Tony wanted to please his son, he reminded him that A.) It was almost dinner time, and B.) Miss Black had made a long journey and probably needed to rest.

"Besides, Champ, we have to give Miss Black the 'Welcome Tour', since the tower will become her new home and I need your help to show her the place."

Harry nodded with happiness, his dad was right and he wanted to help. All those present were starting to head towards the docks when a booming voice stopped them, "MISS BLACK, I NEED TO SPEAK WITH YOU!"

"Only if you ask it nicely," she replied with a singsong and a fake candid grin. Most of the present dropped their jaws in disbelief while Loki quietly chuckled; that mortal had a lot nerve, not many people would dare to taunt Fury in that way.

"Miss Black, would you be so kind to come to my office?" Fury requested in a much more polite tone, "I need to talk with you."

"You see, it's no so hard."

Not willing to push her luck further, Sabrina waved her wand over her trunk that landed on the floor; then she walked towards Fury's office.

"Hey guys, how about you all go to the shuttle while I wait for Miss Black..." Tony spoke while he gave Harry's hand to Steve. His glance toward the office made sure that most of the present got the message. "We'll be there in few minutes."

Tony followed Sabrina, while the rest of the group headed towards the docks. If the Man of Iron thought he would get to know what the chat was about, he soon was disappointed. The door closed behind the Auror and the walls muffled the sound. Stark decided to wait; if they tried to do something that would directly or indirectly harm Harry, he... He didn't know what he would do, but he would stop it. After few seconds he realized that there was only one way to know what was happening inside that office; and lucky for Tony, in a sense he was a wizard too... a technological one.

- o0o -

"Please, Miss Black, take a seat." Fury spoke, his tone was less intimidating, but still it showed who was in charge there. "Your skills are highly impressive."

"Thank you very much," she dryly replied while she sat down.

"I assume that Mr. Shacklebolt has commissioned you not just to take care of the wellbeing of Harry," Fury spoke in a knowing tone.

"That's right," she replied, "By extension, I'm in charge of protecting his father and godfather as well."

"I presume that you have realized that Mr. Stark and Mr. Rogers are part of..."

"The Avengers? Of course."

Fury, who was growing impatient with the impertinence of the young Auror, added, "I also understand that due to your laws, the existence of your magical community should be ignored by the rest of humanity."

"And for your own safety, it's the way that it should be."

"Miss Black," Fury replied seriously, "We are not fully aware about your parallel world and its dangers; because of that, I would like to offer you a position as an external consultant of SHIELD and the Avengers."

"You are very kind... but, I pass." Fury was surprised while Sabrina looked at him sternly and continued talking, "Let me speak clear, Mr. Fury. I'm here under the express order of the Head of the Auror Office and the Minister of Magic. I think that you should know that my loyalty belongs to Kingsley Shacklebolt, and my respects to Mr. Stark. Also, my specific assignment is to protect Harry Potter, now Stark. If it becomes necessary, and with Kingsley's blessing, Mr. Stark and Mr. Rogers are included. But I know who my priority is... So if an alien invasion happens, lunatic overlords try to take over the world, or even if an army of flying monkeys attacks New York... That's not my department; call the Avengers."

"Can you define your parameters of the word 'protection', Miss Black?" Fury replied.

"I was ordered ensure the wellbeing of Harry, physically and emotionally; keep Loki at bay and the Death Eaters away. Plus, my kind wants to be sure that Harry won't be used as lab rat or trained as a sort of magical weapon," Sabrina answered undeterred, and then added, "Now, if you'll excuse me, they are waiting for me. _Au revoir_, Mr Fury."

Sabrina stood up and left the room.

- o0o -

Sabrina left the office and leaned against the door. She took a deep breath, trying to control her emotions. She always had been proud of her discipline and self-control, but people as the Director of SHIELD always got on her nerves. He reminded her of Rufus Scrimgeour. She had the impression that, as with the former Minister of Magic, Fury didn't care about who happened to fall on the road to achieve his goals.

"Frustrated, Miss Black? Fury has that effect in the people." The young Auror jolted with surprised only to see at Tony leaned in the wall close to her. He was smiling in a charming way and added, "Shall we go? Hare-Bear is impatient to take you home and help me to give you the welcome tour."

Sabrina smiled and waved her wand one more time, and used the Locomotus charm to make her trunk follow them.

"What did I do to earn your respect?"

They were halfway to the docks when the millionaire playboy dropped the question. Sabrina blinked astounded, by a second she wondered if Tony was a Legilimens but she discarded it almost immediately, because A.) He was a Muggle and B.) She didn't notice any attempt to invade her mind.

"How did you...?"

"I don't need magic to find it out." Stark said while he pulled from one of his pockets one of his gizmos, while Sabrina made a mental note to use next time Muffliato, or better yet, the Imperturbable Charm. "Besides, I will do everything to protect my boy. So, what I did to earn your respect?"

"At first I thought that you were a rude, arrogant, and selfish Muggle, who didn't care about the others," Sabrina replied with shame and looking at Tony with regret, continued, "I was wrong, and for that I beg your forgiveness, Mr. Stark."

"Well, it isn't the first time that I've gotten that," Tony responded and continued with sadness, "And some ways, it's true. I didn't stop to think how my decision would harm Harry's friends and Miss Weasley."

"It wasn't your decision, Mr. Stark, it was mainly a twist of fate and Ginny's choice," the young Auror comforted him, "I would like to explain it further somewhere more private. The only thing that I can say here is that Harry and you have a second chance to enjoy what you never truly had: A family." After a brief pause, she continued, "Coming back to your question, you aren't what I thought you were. I can see that Harry loves you as a father. Ron, Hermione and Ginny told me that he didn't want leave you when they saw him in the Hospital wing after his kidnapping, and now I see it for first hand why. That says a lot."

"I guess it's time to go home," Tony said with a frank smile, "Besides, Hare-Bear has a knack for running into trouble when I least anticipate it."

"Of course he does," Sabrina chuckled while they started to walk towards the docks, "What do you expect from a member of the Potter _and_ the Stark family?"


	5. A Family Dinner And A Conversation

_A DISCLAIMER AND A SPECIAL DISCLAIMER_

_I don't own the characters of Avengers or Harry Potter. This fic was written with the purpose of providing a fun time to everyone._

_This story is based on the fic "Man of Iron, Father of Gold", and its sequel "Disparity by Magic", both of which were written by Lunabell Marauder Knyte and this one is written with her blessing and permission._

* * *

**KINDRED SPIRITS**

**by**

**Airshadow**

**CHAPTER V**

A FAMILY DINNER AND A CONVERSATION

The shuttle departed from the Helicarrier. Inside, Sabrina sighed while she watched the landscape below through the window. Even though she had some previous knowledge about the none-magical world, she never would cease to be amazed by the things that these folks had to do in order to live without magic. She was also getting a headache from all the mental notes of technological jargon that she had to make in order to learn, update, and master it if she wanted to keep her cover up.

The trip went smoothly and without incident. The young witch sighed in resignation; it was time to live like a normal Muggle... for a short time, anyway. She had finished the Locomotus charm before landing and she started to drag her trunk towards the heli-harbor entrance.

But she didn't count on old-fashioned chivalry still living, and after a short dialog that included phrases such as, _'Please, I don't like to bother anyone', 'It isn't an annoyance', 'Yeah! We are more than willing to help'_, and the like, she finally had to give up; that allowed Steve and Clint help her with her belongings.

When the group landed at Stark Tower, Miss Black and Mister Stark were dragged by an over-excited Harry towards two persons that he acknowledged as Pepper and Uncle Happy. The introductions were very short; Tony gave them enough information to understand that Sabrina wasn't a normal nanny.

After a short talk, it was agreed that Sabrina would sleep on Natasha's floor until she was fully installed; although the spy didn't like the idea that someone else would be in her personal space, she understood the situation. Miss Black was in active service now and her post was beside Harry or in a place close to him, with accommodations or not. Besides, this would be a perfect chance to learn a little bit about the Wizarding World, exploiting the legendary bond that exists among women.

It was then the Welcome Tour started. Harry was impatient to show his new family member his own stuffed Toothless model which allow him to ride or glide at will. The young witch chuckled as she watched the little one fly a few inches over the ground on his mechanical dragon. Her mind recalled a teenager from times gone, flying in the sky on his Firebolt.

"Do you want to see what Uncle Steve gave me for my birthday?" the little warlock asked with a spark of glee in his green doe eyes.

"Of course!" replied Sabrina with a smile. Before that she realized, she was in front of a small replica of a bike with a personalized license plate "By Merlin's beard, isn't that a replica of a Triumph Bonneville T120? My dad once owned one." With a wide smile she added while she looked at Steve, "Your godfather really has good taste."

Steve blushed while Loki, who was hiding behind Thor, pretended vomiting.

"Did your daddy have one? Really, really?" Harry asked with a wide smile.

"O yeah! He also bewitched so that it could fly."

"Seriously?" teased Clint, "I thought that witches used brooms to fly... HEY!" the marksman protested when Natasha gave him a not so friendly nudge.

"Actually, we do. We have a lot fun with them," replied Sabrina while everyone present blinked surprised "Still I have mine but I would rather Apparate since I have my license. Believe me, broomsticks are a bit uncomfortable for longs trips, not to mention through rain and other harsh weather conditions, but they are very fun."

"Ohhhhh!" Harry said with his eyes wide opened, while his mind imagined himself riding a broom, doing stunts in the sky or racing with his dad and Thor. Without delay the little warlock started to bombard Sabrina with questions. His curiosity didn't stop till the 'Welcome Tour' had finished, and 'Uncle' Happy announced that dinner was served.

- o0o -

The dinner was delicious - everybody was in agreement on that. Most of the diners sat in their usual places; in the case of Sabrina, she was placed one of the table's sides near Natasha. After that, the table talk was lively and focused, mainly, in knowing a little more about the new member of this unique family. The usually talkative Harry was very quiet; three pairs of eyes had noticed that, and looked at him expectantly for different reasons.

Tony and Steve were afraid that the little Champ would fire off a question that would be hard to answer, not to mention all the mayhem and discord that it could create just as the last one, which resulted in many adults scolded and grounded by Papa Tony.

On other hand, mayhem and discord were what Loki was expecting. Besides, to his great amusement, the Little Raven had the skill to create a bunch of troubles from nowhere. Even though he didn't like to admit it, his punishment in Midgard wasn't so bad after all, taking into account the alternative. The only part that he still hated of the matter was that he was a mortal and he had no magic.

"Miss Black?"

A childish voice pulled him from his reverie. The god of chaos and mischief was able to sense all the swirling feelings contained in those midgardian hearts. It was glorious! Loki gave an ambiguous smirk. It was show time.

"Yes, Harry?" replied Sabrina with a kind smile.

"Are you really a witch?" the little wizard asked curiously.

"Yes, why do you doubt it?"

"Because witches are old and ugly, and you are very pretty."

"You're very kind, Harry and yes, I'm a witch." Sabrina said with a kind smile, then took her wand from her jacket and showed it to Harry "See, even I have a wand."

"But the fairy godmothers also have a wand, are you sure that you aren't one?" Harry retorted; even though he hadn't liked _The Sleepy Beauty_ or _Cinderella _very much_, _he still watched those movies when Pepper or Aunt Natasha was with him. They were the kind of movies that the girls like to watch, weren't they?

"Well, it's a bit different." Sabrina chuckled.

"How so?" questioned Harry, while he looked at her with those green eyes that shone with innocence and curiosity. Sabrina unconsciously compared them with the old Chosen One's, which had reflected the pain and tiredness of a warrior who had seen many battles.

She had never been very close to his old self, but she had been a good friend of Ginny. Besides, she also kept contact with other common friends such as Luna and Neville; they also had many common losses during the Second Wizarding War, even though he didn't remember them.

"Harry," she hesitated a little while she tried to find the right words, "I don't know if I'm the right person to tell you this… But unfortunately, you can't say if a person is good or bad just for how he or she looks."

"And how will I know it?" Harry insisted while he looked around.

"Well Champ," answered Tony with a comforting hug, "Unfortunately, you almost never know. But, you have many people that love you and are worried for your safety - starting with your handsome dad of course."

Harry smiled and it widened when his dad ruffled his hair. Then looking at Tony, he said "Dad?"

"Yes Hare-bear?"

"Can you explain me some big words that Mr. Laufeyson has said?"

Loki paled while all who were sat in the table gave him a murderous look, including the simpleton and good natured 'brother' of his. The god of mischief did what he usually never does: a deep examination of conscience. But as much as he tried, he couldn't remember what 'Big words' he had spoken that the Little Raven could have heard. By the Nine Realms! If someone didn't come to his rescue soon or his wits failed now, he would be in DEEP TROUBLE.

"What 'big words' has Loki said, Hare-bear?" Tony asked with an eerie tone in his voice. The Asgardian shuddered; he could sense all the rage that was coming from the man of iron's heart. Normally, he would be enjoying that chaos, but now that he was in the heart of the storm, the situation wasn't so funny. He almost wished to face a troll, maybe two, rather than be in that room!

"What is the Inter-Inter-na-tio-nal Sta-tu-te of Wi-zar-ding Segre-Se-cre-cy?"

"Ah, that," Tony sighed in relief while everyone relaxed. Loki heaved a sigh that could be heard in the room and didn't hesitate to give thanks in his mind to the Norns, to Odin, to Frigga, at his good luck and Karma, because this time he wasn't in trouble.

Stark cleared his throat and added with a warm smile, "Well Hare-bear, that's something that Mary Poppins can answer, since that's her specialty."

"Can you tell me, Miss Black, can you?" Harry implored with his sweet innocent shine in his green eyes.

"Oh! Please," replied Sabrina with a smile "Call me Sabrina, Sabby, Adharah, or Addy. The only exception is the Trickster," and glancing at Loki, she added coldly, "I'm still Miss Black for you."

"As you wish, Snow White." Loki retorted like he didn't particularly care about the matter, and felt amused when he saw annoyance in her face.

"Sabby?"

A childish voice distracted the young witch; everyone looked at Harry, who asked, "Can you tell me what those big words mean?"

"Blimey! You're a very curious boy, Harry" Sabrina laughed, and then answered with a smile, "Of course I will. You see, the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy is a group laws and codes that we follow in order to hide ourselves from the Muggles; and every Magical Government has the responsibility to take care that is fulfilled."

"But why hide magic?"

"Because, when the none-magical people find out about us, they won't leave us alone; everyone would like magical solutions to their problems. Cast spells, make them potions, even ask us to do thing that Magic can't do." Sabrina replied patiently. "Besides, in this way they are more protected from influence of the dark wizards."

"Can't you do everything you want with Magic?" Harry questioned now more curious.

"No, it has limits; and trying to tamper with them always bring unpleasant consequences."

"Can you do spells without a wand, as Mr. Laufeyson used to do?"

"I don't know how is the Magic in the Middle-Earth, Narnia or wherever the Trickster comes from..."

"Asgard." Loki said dryly.

"Asgard." Thor echoed almost immediately.

"I'm surprised that a mortal sorceress as you hasn't heard about Asgard," Loki sneered with his usual arrogance.

"I only care about the things that happen on the planet Earth; more specifically, in New York and England," Sabrina replied and added with a much kinder tone, "Well Harry, it's very difficult to do it. Few wizards and witches can cast wand-less spells in normal circumstances; plus, it's even more difficult to do it in situations with high stress levels, and very risky too – it doesn't always work. I only know a few wizards totally capable of that feat."

"Who?" asked Natasha, who was now fully interested.

The young Auror hummed thoughtfully for few seconds and then replied, "One of the most recent and famous were Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody, an Auror; a few more were two previous Headmasters of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape. Another one is Carlotta Pinkstone, a headache for the Ministry of Magic."

"Why?" asked a curious Clint.

"Because she was punished for breaking intentionally the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy so many times, I've lost the count," Sabrina tsked.

"But I've done magic in front of people and nothing has happened," Harry said slightly worried to be punished and wondering how he would be.

"It isn't quite the same," replied Sabrina with a comforting smile "First, it's normal that the close relatives have seen the weird things that happen around a young boy or girl that has the gift of magic. When the parents aren't magic-born, the incidents are usually explained by the appropriate authorities when the time comes. Second, technically you aren't breaking the law because you have little control of your skills, besides you aren't using a real spell or a wand; in the school, you will learn how to control your magic."

"Do wizards go to school?"

"Yes, and there are many around the world" Sabrina replied "By example, the Americans wizards usually send their children to study in Salem Institute of Magic. In Europe, the magical community has more options: Hogwarts, which is considered the best school of magic in the world and its the oldest; other one is Beauxbatons Academy of Magic in France and the Durmstrang Institute, that nobody know where it really is; but my best guess is Norway or Sweden."

"Sabby, the people that took me away from my dad - are they dark wizards?" Harry asked quietly with a tone of fear in his voice. The faces of those present darkened; the memories of that fateful day still haunted the Avengers, mainly for all the awful outcomes that might have happened if some circumstances haven't taken place and someone, totally unexpected, had intervened due a sudden change of heart.

Sabrina sighed and made a quick glance at the Avengers, then replied with a soft tone, "Yes Harry, they are dark wizards."

"Why are they so angry with me? What've I done?"

"Those are the first questions that I can't answer; not right now," Sabrina said with a serious tone. "I know that you don't like the idea of not knowing what's going on, but you have to trust your dad and I. When the time comes, we will talk about it."

Harry nodded, minutes later he yawned and rubbed his eyes wearily. "By God! Look how late is!" the young warlock looked at his dad, while Tony took him up in his arms and continued talking, apparently, with a carefree tone. "It's your bedtime, Champ, remember the saying _'early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise'_."

"M'kay…" The little wizard said half-sleep and looking at Sabrina, Loki and the Avengers over his dad's shoulder, he mumbled while he and his dad were leaving the room, "G'night..."

"Good night, Harry." Echoed most of the presents

"Have good dreams, Little Raven." Loki murmured.

- o0o -

A small table lamp illuminated the room, and Harry had already enlisted for bed. It was a beautiful night, in which the moon was in its full splendor and its friendly light invited to rest. Harry yawned while his dad tucked him in the bed and gave him his favorite plushie: a white owl. The Little warlock smiled when he remembered when Clint won it in a carnival not long ago. One day, he thought, he would have a real one - one like this - and would name it 'Hedwing'.

"Did you brush your teeth, Champ?" Tony asked while he sat in the bed.

"Uh-uh," Harry nodded half-sleep; he could barely keep his eyes opened.

"Good night, Champ." His dad said while he combed gently his hair with his finger, and kissed his forehead.

"Daddy?"

"Yes, Hare-Bear?"

"I love you."

"I love you too, Champ," Tony said while he gave his son a hug; then, he added with a smile, "Good night."

"Good night, daddy." Harry answered with a smile.

Tony turned off the light and left the room. The little warlock waited few minutes, and then summoned the spirits of Lily and James, in order to talk with them before he had to go to sleep.

"Mummy, daddy!" the little boy smiled when he saw the ghosts of his parents and felt their love.

"Hello Sweetheart." Lily's ghost gave a warm smile while she hugged her son.

"Wotcher pup?" James grinned while he ruffled his hair.

"Hey! Don't forget about me!" said a laughing voice from in front of him.

Then the young Stark looked at the end of his bed, where there was an extra guest. The third spirit looked like a young, tall and handsome man. He had long black hair. His eyes were gray and had a mischievous glint. It was...

"Siri!" Harry replied with glee.

"Hello Prongslet!" Sirius replied with a broad smile. Harry laughed, and told his parents and Siri about what happened that day.

"One question, do you like Sabby?" Harry finally asked his parents and Sirius.

"She's a good person and very brave." Lily answered while she hugged her son one final time.

"Just as her dad." Sirius added with a grin.

"She really cares about you and your new family." James said.

"Do you know why she is so sad?" Harry questioned with concern "when nobody looks at her, she look so unhappy."

The three spirits glanced each other for few seconds and then Sirius replied, "Her heart is broken."

"How can I fix it?"

"You are doing that." Lily answered with a smile.

"Well pup," James smiled and once again ruffled his son's hair, "It's time that you go to sleep."

"M'kay" Harry yawned while his daddy, mommy and Siri gave him a hug before beginning to fade. Soon the young warlock fell asleep with a wide smile; he felt very happy, he had a new member in his family and Pepper would have another girl to chat with, besides aunt Nat. Minutes later his room's door opened, and Tony looked around. He could have sworn he have heard something. But, he didn't see anything. After confirming that Harry was asleep, he attributed all to his imagination and closed the door.

- o0o -

Tony entered into what the Avengers considered 'the Family Room,' where they usually came to relax and chat a little bit before retiring to their respective floors. The place was well-illuminated, decorated, and furnished with class. An entertainment center had a last generation HDTV, plus a huge collection of movies that delighted not only Harry and Tony, but all members of their unusual family.

The furniture was comfortable and had a contemporaneous style; each piece placed strategically allowing everyone in the room to see everyone else. Natasha, Steve and Bruce took seats on the sofa, whereas Clint was sitting in one of the two comfortable armchairs, which was close to a chess game; Sabrina was in the other. Iron Man looked annoyed that Loki was again settled on his favorite Ottoman - when clearly he had been told not to more than once. Sometimes, the billionaire had the feeling that the so-called Prince of Evil did everything he could to irk him. Unsurprisingly, Thor was close to his problematic brother.

Happy had already served decaffeinated coffee to Miss Black, Clint and Steve; Miss Romanoff had chosen to drink a Russian tea brand, the name of which was unpronounceable for most of those present. Tony cleared his throat and started, "Sabrina, I understand that some stuff related to my son requires a further explanation – such as some drawings that he has done after one of his nightmares." He handed some papers to the young Auror, "I hope that this will help."

Sabrina looked over the drawings, her face reflecting different sets of emotions, from a bittersweet smile to a deep sadness. The most unexpected reaction was when the young witch tried to hold a laugh. Then, she showed to those present the picture of a blonde ferret, "Sorry, this one was linked to a quite funny happening. Have you met, for any chance, a blonde, pale wizard in the New York incident?" the Avengers nodded, and she added, "Well, here is a drawing of him when he was transformed like this; I don't have to mention that that was the most humiliating moment in his life."

Everyone chuckled. When they calmed down, Sabrina looked at them and continued, "These drawings are glimpses of Harry's old self - windows to his former past."

"You say that as if it no longer exists," Natasha observed.

"Most of his memories were magically modified or removed," Sabrina replied. "The originals are in custody; Harry will see them when the time comes."

"Can you do that? How so?" Clint asked with disbelief.

"Magic," Sabrina replied with a grin.

In that moment, Tony noticed an album that was under Sabrina's jacket. She took from it a picture and placed it together with a drawing that showed a black haired man and red haired woman. She passed them to Clint, whom gave them to Tony. Everyone took a turn to look at them. It was a wedding photograph; the groom had a strong resemblance to Harry, while the bride had his emerald colored eyes.

"James and Lily Potter," she clarified while the Avengers nodded. A third man appeared who the Avengers guessed was James's best man. They looked at Sabrina, who spoke while she showed another drawing, the one with the man and the black dog. "My father, Sirius Black. I think that its time to tell my story - our story."

The young witch left the drawings on a nearby table and took a deep breath; it wouldn't be an easy talk because it would open old wounds. Finally, she started to speak.

"I think that the beginning of all would be an explanation how were those days," she said in a barely audible voice. "It was dark times; every day brought news about tragedies, murders and disappearances that haunted us, and nobody knew who they could trust. Slowly we discovered the enemy: Tom Marvolo Riddle, better known as Voldemort, and his Death Eaters."

Sabrina stopped her story for a moment; one could have heard a pin drop. Then she continued, "As always happen with the tyrants, there exist people that decide to oppose them and fight; because of that, in 1970, The Order of Phoenix was formed, the Avengers of our world. Even though the main targets of the Death Eaters were Muggles and Muggle-born, they focused their rage on the Order members; they consider them blood-traitors, and in that manner many good wizards and witches died. Edgar Bones was murdered with most of his family; another loss was Marlene McKinnon, all her family totally wiped out together her; Caradoc Dearborn disappeared under suspicious circumstances and was considered dead long ago; Fabian and Gideon Prewett needed six Death Eaters to kill them; their sister, Molly Weasley neé Prewett never fully recovered from their deaths."

"Molly Weasley? Miss Weasley's Mother?"

"The mother of that red-haired mortal? By Odin's sake, what's his name? Oh yes - is she George's mother?"

Sabrina nodded at the billionaire and the god of mischief, and she continued "James and Lily Potter were members of the Order in that time, alongside my father, and others that they met in school. They learned that among their ranks lurked a traitor; they also knew that Voldemort was targeting the Potters. To complicate things further, my mother learned around September or October that she was pregnant with twins. It was then that they decided to hide… and when the things went terribly wrong."

Her voice dropped to a whisper. "It was decided to use a complicated charm named Fidelius to hide the Potters' location; this spell requires that the secret is implanted in a soul, and who houses it, is named 'Secret-Keeper'. The first choice was my father; but he and James knew that to be too obvious. It was a well-known fact that my father was his best friend. In the last second and without saying a word to anyone, they switch the Secret-Keeper, but they trusted in the wrong person and the plan backfired."

After a brief moment, Sabrina continued "All know what happened on that Halloween night: the Potters were murdered and Voldemort temporarily defeated. After that, Peter Pettigrew, alias Wormtail, knew that my father would seek revenge, and so he hatched a plan to frame him and disappear. My father tracked him down; when they were close, Wormtail screamed aloud that my father had betrayed James and Lily and cast a blasting curse that killed twelve Muggles. Once he did that, he cut off one of his fingers and took his Animagus form - a rat - and he escaped."

"And your father was blamed?" Natasha inquired with an uncharacteristically compassionate tone.

"Not only him," The young witch replied with a dim tone, "My mother was blamed too, and both were sent without a trial to Azkaban - the wizarding world's worst prison."

The Avengers looked at her shocked, it took a while before Clint was able to stammer "Without a trial?"

"In that time a power-hungry wizard named Bartemious Crouch Senior was in charge of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and the Council of Magical Law," replied Sabrina with a clear resentment in her voice. "His goal was to become Minister of Magic, and in order to do it, he toughened the measures against known or suspected Death Eaters; By example, he authorized the Aurors to use the Unforgivable Curses against Voldemort's followers or any suspects. You can guess with those traits that he considered any further investigation into the murder of those people unnecessary; and everyone took it at face value that my mom was as guilty too - All because she was the wife of the man who everyone believed had betrayed the Potters, and they assumed that she must have known something about it or was involved some how. Always happens."

"What happened next?" Tony asked softly.

"My aunt and grandmother pulled all the strings that they had in order to free my mother. They couldn't help my father, even though they believed in my mom's word that things happened as she told them; but no proof existed to support her claims, so they could do nothing for him at that moment. His friends and public opinion, in the best of the cases, thought that my mom's story was the ravings of a woman in love. In the worst, they made her life miserable. Due to those circumstances, the best advice that my gran and Aunt Camila gave her was to take me with her and leave England."

"And come to America?" Steve whispered.

"We had no acquaintances here and no one could connect us to what happened in United Kingdom; I guess that my mother wanted to give me a normal childhood. We settled in the outskirts of Garden Grove, California. We came back to England when I was thirteen."

"I do beseech you excuse my curiosity, Lady Adhara," Thor interjected, "Thou hast mentioned a twin; I beg thy pardon if I am indiscreet, but what happened with the babe?"

"That's not being indiscreet, brother," Loki said with a blatantly mocking tone, "That's being a nosy busybody."

Everyone looked at the Prince of Chaos with a reproachful glance, but he didn't pay any mind.

"Stillborn, it was a boy. It happened shortly after my mother was freed." Sabrina said glumly while everyone in the room shuddered with anger.

Tony cleared his throat and spoke "I guess that is the time to retire; it's late."

"Mr. Stark, do you have the blueprints of this building and other ones that you and Harry inhabit?" Sabrina's asked and Iron Man nodded; then she added, "I wonder if you could provide me with a copy of each one. I need them in order to know where to place the magical wards, and to have an idea how to keep a proper surveillance."

"I'll give them as soon as I can," Tony assured, "Please, keep me informed."

"I will. Just one more thing; Messrs Odinson" Thor looked at Sabrina while Loki snorted with annoyance, she added "When you rescued Harry, did you have the chance to see the Death Eater's face?" the Asgardians nodded, then Sabrina added "I'm expecting to have a copy of the records of some of them; I wonder if you can help me to identify them - I need to know whom it is I am facing."

"Excuse me?" The young Auror blinked and looked at Clint, "What do you wanted to mean with 'whom I am facing', are you telling us that we aren't invited to kick some Death Eaters' butts?"

"I thought that you have a slight idea what they are capable to do!" she argued, "This isn't like dealing with common criminals or an alien invasion; most of them are totally competent in casting spells without wand and without saying a word! I can't allow you to face them when this is something totally different! Something for which you aren't prepared!"

"Then train us! You can teach us how to deal with them," Natasha replied, who tried to convince her, "Besides, it isn't the first time that we cope with a spellcaster."

"Thou art very brave, Lady Adhara," Thor intervened, "But we will not allow ye face these villains alone."

"You will only get yourself killed," Bruce added. "This will be a battle that you can't win."

"I know," she said with eerie voice tone, "But in case they appear, I will try to buy enough time in order for some of you to take Harry and run out."

"Do you know something brother dearest? I'm quite sure that you and Miss Snow White will get along," Loki said with a sneer while he glanced at Thor. "You and her have many things in common."

"Why dost thou think that, brother?"

"Because, you two are brave, noble, and totally lack any sense of self-preservation."

Thor laughed heartily then with a slight bow, he replied, "I bid you good night, my friends. Come brother, it's time to retreat to our bedchambers."

Both Asgardians retired, while the others ended to say the goodnights and did the same.

- o0o -

That night everyone went to sleep lulled by their own reflections: Tony was relieved because none of the things that he feared that morning had happened; besides, having another pairs of eyes to keep an eye on Loki was always a good idea, especially if it was someone who carries some understanding of the hocus pocus things.

Moreover, the other Avengers still didn't know what to think about Miss Black. Natasha felt intrigued by the young Auror, she had more questions than answers. On the other hand, Clint was amused by the fact that Loki seemed afraid of her; in his personal opinion, things would become very interesting now. Steve and Thor thought that she was a sort of soldier very devoted to her cause and she wouldn't be deterred of it, no matter the circumstances.

Bruce concluded that none of the other guys would be able to scare her. Loki had the feeling that Miss Snow White was a force to be reckoned with, and he had to be very careful with her; the mix between Magic, wand, and no fear of using them could have unpleasant consequences for him. But on the other hand, she seemed to be a rare combination between a Valkyrie and a sorcerer.

But, in spite of their personal opinions, they were in agreement - without knowing it - that she seemed totally capable of dealing with every situation. Only time would tell if that was true.


	6. Family Portrait

_A DISCLAIMER AND A SPECIAL DISCLAIMER_

___I don't own the characters of Avengers or Harry Potter. This fanfiction was written with the purpose of providing a fun time to everyone. _

___This story is based on " Man of Iron, Father of Gold" and its sequel "Disparity by Magic", both of which were written by Lunabell Marauder Knyte. This is written with her blessing and permission._

* * *

******KINDRED SPIRITS**

by

Airshadow

******CHAPTER VI**

FAMILY PORTRAIT

Life in the Avengers' tower was returning to normal - the typical normality for that place, anyway. There were no evil overlords trying to take over the world; the Other Guy hadn't appeared for weeks; no alien invasions from outer space; and the Death Eaters had yet to show their skully faces.

Slowly, Miss Black was adjusting to her new surroundings and routine. She had thought that living without magic would be difficult; but thanks to the Avengers, it wasn't too hard. Taking into count that Sabrina had spent some time living as a muggle when she was a child, she was quite familiar with some aspects of the normal life of the non-magical folk, making the transition process easier; but other concepts, such as email, were new for her.

"But what the heck do you use in order to call each other when do you need it?" asked an incredulous Clint one morning while they, together the others Avengers, were waiting for Harry and Tony in order to make breakfast - like the family that they were. The marksman, like most of the Avengers, couldn't conceive living in a world without cell phones or email.

"Well," Miss Black replied, "The veterans of the Order of Phoenix use the Patronus charm for all the advantages offered and the nature of it; but most wizards and witches send messages and packages using owls, whihc know where to find the recipients -but it is admittedly slow, and they can be intercepted."

"Owls? Are you sure that they aren't homing pigeons- Hey!" Clint protested as Natasha nudged him.

"Technically, all kinds of birds can be used."

"So, technically Mr. Barton can do the job because Stark always says that he is a 'birdbrain'," Loki said as he and Thor arrived to join the family for breakfast. With a tone full of malice, the Prince of Chaos continued while his brother begged with his eyes for him to be silent, and the rest of the present wanted to silence him. "You should consider it, Barton, if you want a change of career."

"And you should consider SHUTTING UP, DEER! OR THE URTICARIA WILL BE THE LEAST OF YOUR PROBLEMS!" snapped Clint.

"Urticaria?" Sabrina hissed while she noticed that Loki had a severe case of said hives, "Trickster, have you delved into _MY _stuff by any chance?"

"If I've done it, you can bet that I won't tell you," Loki replied with an insane grin. "And before you shoot a spell, let me give you just a few words: International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy."

Sabrina was furious while she lowered her wand. She was more than willing to stuff him with Veritaserum to find out what he had done; regrettably, she couldn't. But she was sure about one thing: he wasn't up to any good.

"Is everything all right here?" inquired a well-known voice. When everyone turned their heads toward the door, they saw Tony and Harry had just arrived to eat their breakfast with them. Tony looked around trying to figure out what was going on.

"Sort of..." Bruce whispered, trying to avoid any further problems.

"Well then, if everything is settled, we can eat our breakfast." Tony replied while he placed Harry in his seat and took his own, still not fully convinced that all was normal. Loki was making faces while Sabrina was fighting the urge to cast a curse on him - the Cruciatus Curse, to be exact.

"Daddy?" A childish voice asked, and all eyes were on Harry.

"Yes Harry?" A carefree Tony acknowledged as he was reading the Wall Street Journal.

"Are owls a species of nocturnal birds?"

"Yes, why do you ask Champ?" Tony answered while he looked at his son and lowered the papers; everyone was aware of his words.

"Because, I see one - right there," Harry said innocently while he pointed with his little index finger at the window. Everyone looked to the window and saw a white British Barn Owl that was fluttering and trying to get they attention.

"Jarvis, could you open the window, please?" Sabrina said politely with an eerie shine in her eyes that made Loki nervous. Interacting with the building's AI was an easy concept to grasp for her; after all, it was like talk with a domestic elf.

"Of course, Miss Black," the AI answered as one of the windows opened, allowing the owl to come in. The bird dropped an envelope, which was sealed with purple wax and the emblem of the Minister of Magic, as well as the personal seal of Kingsley Shacklebolt. Looking at her owl, Sabrina smiled and said "Thank you, Socrates. Are you tired, little one?" Socrates hooted weakly, the young witch added while she extended an arm, "Poor little thing, come, rest a bit."

Socrates landed in Sabrina's arm and settled on her shoulder, while she opened the envelope and read the letter. As she read the letter, her face lit up and she threw Loki several intriguing glances. When she finished, she took her wand and conjured a perch for birds with a small bowl of water. Socrates hooted happily and settled in it; the bird started to drink water and after a while fell asleep.

"Mr. Stark, can Socrates remain here? He and I are old friends, and it's a long flight to my home in England," Sabrina asked politely.

"Sure, no problem," replied a slightly surprised Tony.

"Thank you, Mr. Stark," Sabrina said. Loki chuckled, and she added, "What's the joke, Trickster?"

"Five words, Snow White: International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy."

"Seven words, Trickster: Permission to cast Magic at discretion."

"Don't you know how count? That's only six." Loki teased.

"Oh! I can add one more," The young Auror replied. She pointed her wand at Loki, and said in loud voice, "Legilimens!"

A transparent wave attacked Loki; before he could avoid it, the spell hit him and the former-god had the unpleasant feeling that something was scrutinizing his mind. The voices and sounds around him faded, and images of past events appeared in rapid succession. This unpleasant experience lasted, in the prince of chaos's opinion, an eternity; just to be shaken by an angry high pitched screech of, "LOOOKIIIIIII! YOU HAVE BEEN READING MY JOURNAL!"

Loki paled when he saw a very angry Miss Black aiming her wand against him; without a second to lose, he ran away and reached the door in less than five seconds. At the same time, Sabrina transformed into her Animagus form and ran under the table; once she reached the other side she recover her human form and trailed closely after the prince of mischief without ceasing to fire off jinxes, hexes and curses. Another individual that joined the commotion was Thor. He desperately was trying to protect his younger brother and ran behind the young Auror, hoping to made her see reason before something really awful occurred. It all happened so fast, the others Avengers couldn't interfere - even if they wanted to.

"Why is Mr. Laufeyson in trouble?" Harry asked innocently.

"Harry, let Uncle Clint give you a lesson for life," Hawkeye replied in a solemn tone, while the little warlock nodded and looked at him expectantly; then marksman continued, "First, never EVER read a girl's journal; secondly, an even greater reason not to do it is if she can somehow fight back."

"Where did you learn that, Birdbrain?" Tony teased, "Have you read Natasha's journal? Oh, wait! In order to do that, you must have decoded it first, didn't you?"

"Weeeelll," Clint answered vaguely, "Something like that."

"What happened next? Something like what is going on right now?" Bruce asked curiously, while everyone in the room could clearly heard the commotion outside the dining room - Yells, things being broken, sounds of spells being shot - true pandemonium.

"Something like that," Natasha replied drily.

"Do you think that we should stop them?" Steve asked with a little concern for the safety of the so-called god of mischief.

"Nah!" Tony replied easily while he took his newspaper again and took a sip of his coffee; then he added, "Reindeer must start to face the music, or he's never gonna learn."

The rest of the Avengers agreed and started to eat their breakfast.

"You know," Clint said before starting to eat his scrambled eggs with bacon, "With those two together, we won't have any dull moments."

- o0o -

This time it seemed that Loki had learned his lesson; when tempers calmed, the prince of chaos was turned by the total of spells used on him – much to Thor's dismay - into a blue jellylike mass. Despite the pleas of the Thunder god, who appealed to Sabrina's kind heart, she didn't do anything to help his brother; who remained in that state until Harry intervened on his behalf, with his green puppy eyes and some pouting.

"Only because I can't stand see you cry," Miss Black said, still convinced that it wasn't a good idea, as she cleared all the spells that she had cast upon him. Loki came back to his normal shape and since then, he wisely kept his distance and hold his tongue for a while when Miss Snow White was around.

Some other things that the Avengers had learned the hard way: be careful with the things that were on Sabrina's floor; and 'Don't Touch' meant don't touch. That lesson was assimilated when they were putting the finishing touches on the place that would be inhabited by Miss Black.

While Harry was in a tutoring session with George, Tony showed Sabrina and the other Avengers her new home. The job was done nicely. Tony insisted that he cover all the cost when Sabrina tried to bring her own furniture and stuff. In the end, and thanks to Pepper's mediation, they reached an agreement: The place would be decorated according to Sabrina's taste and she would bring some of her own furniture.

The first thing that a visitor would see when they came in would be a living room with a sand color rug and furnished in a way that matched; the couch and armchairs were comfortable, ample and close to an electric fireplace, whose frame looked like real stones. A few pictures of Sabrina's family and friends - wearing 'normal' clothes - decorated the walls, but unlike the animated ones that were in other wizards' houses, these were static, in order to prevent possible Muggle visitors suspecting something out of place.

The place also had a small office with a classical-style writing desk and a laptop provided by Tony; Sabrina thought that her uncle, Mr. Weasley, would be happier than her to deal with technology and its jargon. While Tony and Pepper explained the hi-tech gizmos added in the accommodations to Miss Black, a surprised exclamation caught the attention of everyone there.

Sabrina and Tony left the studio, and what they saw made them laugh together with the other Avengers - well, not all them. Close to the entrance doorway were the doors that lead to a cozy kitchenette and small closet where the coats could be stored. Hawkeye seemed to have problems with opening the door of the small closet, while Miss Black's jacket was on the floor. It seemed that Clint wanted to be a gentleman doing her a favor, saving it in its place.

"Can you stop laughing and help me?" Clint said, annoyed while all the present couldn't stop laughing.

"Ohhh! What happen, Mr. Barton?" Loki teased while Clint threw him murderous glances, "Can't you open a simple door?"

"I CAN'T DROP THE DOORKNOB! I'M STUCK!" Hawkeye said, thoroughly annoyed.

"Ohmigosh!" Sabrina exclaimed while she took her wand and waved it, freeing him, "My apologies, I used the sticking charm in order to catch intruders. You're lucky; I considered using the Flagrante Curse, but I thought that it could be potentially dangerous."

"The Flagrante Curse?" Natasha curiously asked.

"It burns whoever touches an object bewitched with it." Sabrina explained "It's particular nasty because it no has an external sign to warn the victim." And added with a significantly glance at Loki, who hid behind Thor, "A perfect deterrent for the meddlesome."

"Harry could have been harmed!" Tony exclaimed in shock.

"For that possibility, I gave up on the idea," Sabrina replied.

"Are you afraid that Loki might steal one of your coats? Or is this where you hide your journal now?" Clint joked.

"I needed a place where I could craft my potions, keep my spell books safe, and have everything at hand," Sabrina replied.

"In that tiny space?" Bruce exclaimed incredulously "How? The total volume contained in that room is miniscule compared to the average size of a fully equipped laboratory. I don't know how large a wizard's lab is, but I bet that it isn't THIS small. How could that be possible?"

"Magic," Sabrina answered, "But this time, I had to use a very complicate charm to avoid the spells used to modified the room and have it go outside the area; but the real trick would be use the minimum number possible to defend the building against unwanted visitors without using too many of them. Magic and electricity don't get along."

"Are you telling me that there exists a magical method to modify the mass and space?" Bruce insisted.

"Yep, I bet that that would perplex even the likes of Steven Hawking," she confirmed with a grin, laughing in amusement when she saw expression of surprise on the Avengers' faces, especially on Tony and Bruce.

"What? Some of us are more open-minded and enjoy learning about Muggle science." Sabrina explained.

"You talk about the wizards and the non-magical folk as if they were two different species," Steven observed.

"I never have seen it in that way," she mused, "But we live in two separate worlds that rarely intermingle and most rarely get along. Because of that we decide to hide ourselves and hide magic."

"How so, and why?"

Sabrina looked at Natasha and then to others Avengers before answering, "The Witch Hunts in Europe; The Salem Trials in Massachusetts; The Spanish Inquisition in the New World during the Colony Era; the fear that some cultures still have of Witches. They did not always catch a real wizard or witch, but a real one without a wand is a sitting duck - particularly if is a young one. Not to mention that through these times, some Muggles wanted us to teach them magic, or worse, used us for their own ends - as happened in World War Two. The best option that we have is to hide ourselves and our world; especially since we aren't the dominant species. For us, it's a matter of survival. Also, some dark wizards and witches can attempt to use the Muggles for their own ends. This already has happened before as I told you when I arrived here."

"Point taken," Natasha said dryly.

- o0o -

After the tutoring session, Harry invited George to dinner with his daddy Tony and his new family. George accepted and took a seat near Loki. The two troublemakers talked during the meal, sharing many anecdotes and stories about their pranks in Hogwarts and Asgard - tales that made all those present laugh or drop their jaws.

"... Since then, the little Ronnie has had a fear of spiders, but that taught him that it wasn't wise to piss off Fred," George finished with a wide smile while Loki and the others tried to hold back a laugh.

"You and your brother have performed quite a number of excellent pranks," Loki admitted.

"We were legends," George replied, grinning, "We were the usual suspects behind any mischief that happened in the school. Everyone even attributed us things that we hadn't done; such as giving Peeves, Hogwarts's resident poltergeist, a Muggle toy - I think that you call it a water gun. Whoever did it filled it with ink and applied an automatic refill spell - You can imagine the mess. But they couldn't prove that we did it, because we had already dropped out of school, but still they blamed us anyway."

Everyone laughed while Sabrina had a weird look on her face. George continued, "Another good prank that they would have wanted to blame us for happened sometime after we drop out. Someone bewitched a very nasty girl named Pansy Parkinson, and within a week she had a nice pair of antlers; I would feel sorry for her, if she weren't such a bully. "

"I'm not very fond of bullies," Steve said sternly, "But I don't agree with that."

"She earned it," Sabrina countered, "As if the poor Susan Bones hadn't suffered enough, she had to deal with that pug-faced bully."

"Why do I have the feeling, dear cousin, that you were involved somehow?" George asked with a mischievous smile.

"Because I did it," she admitted frankly. All the eyes flew to Sabrina, looking at her with surprise and open mouths.

"How? Why?"

"I watched Pansy and the others members of her gang bullying a classmate named Susan Bones, as well as other students. I was so angry that I was more than willing to do something really nasty to her; after all, she was the ring leader of that mob of cowards. I wanted so madly humiliated her, and that was the best way to do it."

"A set of antlers was the most humiliating thing that you could think of?" Loki snorted. "Geeze, I could have given you some advice in that matter."

"I made some arrangements, in order to make it more... unpleasant." Sabrina said vaguely

"What sort of 'arrangements'?" Bruce blinked curiously.

"Do you remember what Georgie told us about the Weasleys' Wildfire Whiz-Bangs? That each time anyone used the vanishing charm, the intensity of the fireworks was increased by ten? Well, I did something like that."

"Something like that?" Clint commented with disbelief. The marksman was sitting in front of Loki just in case.

Sabrina gave a malicious smile and what she said next made everyone's, even Loki's, jaws drop. "Well, it took me a while to get it but when Madam Pomfrey gave up the attempt to remove them, Parkinson's antlers were the size of a moose's. It was part of the plan."

"Nice job; but the spell needed a slight polish, it vanished a few days after." George tsked.

"Well, I removed it after a week," Sabrina replied in embarrassment. "My conscience got the better of me."

"I bet that your parents weren't very happy when they found out about it." Clint teased.

"The first thing my dad did when I came back home to spent the holidays was give me a sonorous scolding."

"And after that?" Tony asked, not knowing who was the worse troublemaker of all - Loki, George, or the unusual suspect, Sabrina.

"When my mom wasn't looking, I was quietly congratulated," she replied with a prankish smile as everyone in the room laughed warmly.

"My, my - My goody-goody cousin is a little mischievous after all?" George said with irony and tsked, "What other nasty things have you done in your schooling days, dear Sabrina?"

"I was who bewitched the water gun and gave it to Peeves," Sabrina confessed bluntly. "He had the best of holidays annoying our dear Headmistress Umbridge."

"I bet that Aunt Cassandra wouldn't be happy when she received McGonagall's letter." George chuckled.

"First, I wasn't caught; second, Professor McGonagall wasn't too fond of Professor Umbridge, so she wouldn't tell."

"Milord George, art thou and lady Adhara relatives by blood?" Thor asked curiously

"My dad and hers are first cousins." He replied with a smile "In our society, most families are related in to some degree or another," George said with a chuckle, looking at Sabrina and Harry. "Do you know something, Sabby? Last week, we found out that your great-great aunt, Dorea Black married with someone named Charlus Potter; that opens the possibility that you and Harry are... Third cousins? You may even be his aunt."

"That would be nice, wouldn't it daddy?" Harry said excitedly while he looked at Tony, "Now Sabby really is part of our family!"

"How do you feel to be part of the family, Auntie Sabby?" Loki teased, but suddenly he ducked under the table; missing a hex by mere inches.

"MISS BLACK TO YOU, CUPID!" Sabrina replied annoyed.

"My dear cousin," George joked, "Cupid is seated just in front of him."

"WHAT!?" Clint jumped, thinking he must have heard wrong.

"I'm joking," George replied with an impish smile while Loki tried to hold back a laugh.

"You should come here more often, George." Loki said with a smirk. "We could, oh, share creative ideas about how to pull a good prank."

"I think that you shouldn't be together for long periods of time," Sabrina scoffed disapprovingly, "You two are totally capable of causing the Second Fire of London, World War Three, and Armageddon in less than a week- What am I saying, you can do it in less than three days!"

Loki and George looked each other with mischievous smiles and asked at that same time, "Is that a challenge?"

"NO!" Tony spoke with a stern tone so uncharacteristic of him, "And you must remember, Reindeer... "

"I know, I know," Loki said annoyed and parodying Tony, he added, "If I misbehave you will send me to the Helicarrier's cell."

"And you, George!" Sabrina added severely.

"What will you do?" George replied with a blatantly mocking tone "Will you give me a detention, sent me with the headmaster to make me write lines?"

"I'll drop some lines to your mother!" Sabrina shot back as George paled.

"You wouldn't."

"Sooo, is your mother so fearsome?" Loki asked him with a tone full of curiosity.

"Believe me buddy, you wouldn't like to be in her line of fire when she is mad," George assured.

"George?" asked a childish voice. All eyes were directed at the little Harry.

"Yes, Harry?"

"Where is Fred? Why not he comes? He and Loki could become great friends." Harry asked innocently.

George's and Sabrina smile faded in few seconds and with low voice he said "He's gone."

Everyone looked at him with sorrow, even Loki was dismayed. Harry left his place and ran quickly at George's. Once he arrived there, the little warlock give him a tight hug and said "Do you miss him?"

"Every day." George confessed, "Sometimes, I feel as if I have lost half of myself."

Harry looked at Sabrina's and George's eyes. A deep sadness resided in them, and Harry deduced that George also had a broken heart. But how to fix it? Hmmm, maybe his dad could tell him, he was so smart!

"I guess that I have to leave" George said suddenly awkwardly, "Tomorrow, I have an appointment with McGonagall. My son has been busy doing pranks."

"Why am I not surprised?" Sabrina replied ironically, "How many detentions has the little Fred has so far?"

"Forty in three months," George answered with a proud smile.

"Forty?!" Bruce shouted in shock.

"Such a shame, too; at his age, my twin and I had sixty. Still, he makes me so proud," George said with a mischievous grin. The Avengers looked each other, not knowing what to think about the former prankster. Tony checked his watch and took Harry in his arms, and the little warlock knew that it was time to go to sleep. He said goodnight and they left the room. The Avengers decided to retire too and started to say their goodbyes to George.

"Oi, Loki!"

The fallen god of mischief glanced in surprise at the red-haired mortal and replied, "Did you call?"

"From a prankster to another, could I give you some advice?" Loki nodded and George continued, "If I remember rightly, you and your simple-minded brother don't get along, right?"

"What if we don't?" Loki snorted in annoyance.

"Listen, mate," George replied with a forlorn tone of voice that sounded foreign from him, "My older brother, Percy, was a power hungry moron; he turned his back on us when we needed him most. In the Battle of Hogwarts, he asked us forgiveness for his actions, and shortly after that, my twin, Fred, died. Even though Weatherby has made amends with us, still he feels a lot of guilt for what happened with Fred."

"Your point is?" the Prince of Chaos asked dryly.

"My point is that notwithstanding all the mischief that you have done, your oaf brother loves you. And in the least expected moment, you can lose the only person that really cares about you in this building, and maybe in this universe; at least think about it. You should really appreciate that; you never know what'll happen next."

Loki gave a sneer. Think about that! That was the dumbest advice that he had ever received. But before he could tell Georgie what he thought about it, the former Prankster had disapparated. The Prince of Chaos shook his head and walked towards the floor that he shared with his brother.

- o0o -

"And they lived happy ever after."

Tony closed the book and smiled at his son, while the little Harry held his white owl plushie and was starting to fall sleep. Stark smiled when he realized that he never thought that one day he would be sitting like this, reading a bedtime story to a son, _HIS_son. Because, Harry may be not his son by blood; but still he considered him as if he was, and nothing would change that. The Man of Iron gently ran his fingers through Harry's black hair while he whispered, "Good night, Champ."

Stark stood up and was about to turn off the little lamp that was in the nearby night table, when a childish voice caught his attention.

"Daddy?"

"Yes, Hare-bear?" Tony said with a warm smile while he sat down in the bed.

"Can you fix everything?" Harry asked whilst he looked at his father with his bright green eyes.

"Of course! What's broken? Your model of Toothless?"

"No."

"One of your bikes?"

"No"

"What is broken, Hare-bear?"

"Sabrina's heart," Harry said innocently.

Tony blinked, perplexed, and asked, "What makes you say that, Hare-bear?"

"It's not the first time that I saw Sabrina sad," Harry replied. "When nobody sees her, she looks so unhappy and lonely. I know that her heart is broken, but I don't know how to fix it - do you know how can I do it?"

"Well, Harry…" Tony was doubtful and not sure what to say, "That doesn't really have an easy answer. You can find spare parts for machines and make them work - but humans aren't machines, as you know - so we can't 'fix' her heart just like a machine. I think all that we can do to help Sabrina is give her some time and stay with her. She's spent few weeks with us and still is adapting to a world that is new for her. But don't worry, champ, we will find out how heal her broken heart. "

"Daddy? Is George's heart broken too?"

Tony's eyes had now a saddened look as he whispered, "I think so, Hare-bear."

"Do you think that can we heal it too?"

"We can try." He replied while he gently ran his fingers in Harry's hair.

"Good night, daddy," Harry said as he closed his eyes.

"Good night, Champ," Tony replied as he turned off the light and left the room.


End file.
